Places in News Current Affairs MCQs

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In the harsh environment of Death Valley, 97 runners recently embarked on the Badwater 135, a 48-hour ultramarathon renowned as the world’s toughest foot race. Death Valley, located in southeastern California, USA is the lowest, hottest, and driest part of North America, spanning 7,800 sq. km, with about 1,425 sq. km below sea level. This rift valley, formed by the sinking of rock between major faulted mountains, is part of Death Valley National Park and the Mojave and Colorado Deserts Biosphere Reserve. It is bordered by the Grapevine, Funeral, and Black Mountains to the east, and the Panamint and Cottonwood Mountains to the west.

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UNESCO has inscribed China’s Migratory Bird Sanctuaries along the Yellow Sea-Bohai Gulf (Phase II) to its World Heritage List. The Bohai Gulf, the innermost part of the Yellow Sea, covers about 78,000 sq. km along China’s northeastern coast. Historically known as the Gulf of Chili or Pechili, it is surrounded by the Liaodong and Shandong Peninsulas. Major cities like Dalian and Tianjin are located on its shores, and it features important bays such as Liaodong Bay and Bohai Bay. The Yellow River flows into the gulf, which is a key area for petroleum deposits and industries.

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A deadly strike on a playing field in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights has heightened concerns about a possible new conflict. The Golan Heights is a rocky plateau in southwestern Syria, about 60 km from Damascus. It covers 1,000 sq km and is surrounded by the Jordan River, the Sea of Galilee, Mount Hermon, the Wadi Al-Ruqqad River, and the Yarmuk River. It is considered occupied territory under international law.

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India resumed importing Tur dal from Mozambique’s Nacala Port after a disruption. Mozambique is a Southeast African country with a long Indian Ocean coastline, separated from Madagascar by the Mozambique Channel. It borders Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, and Eswatini. Major rivers include the Zambezi and Limpopo, and its highest peak is Mount Binga. Mozambique is rich in resources like gold, emeralds, copper, iron ore, and bauxite.

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Diego Garcia is a strategically important island in the southern Indian Ocean, despite its small size of 30 square kilometers. The island is owned by Mauritius, controlled by the U.K., and occupied by the U.S. It serves as a key military base for the U.S., with a lease extending to 2036, reflecting its strategic significance in regional security and surveillance. The island’s status is complex, with historical issues dating back to 1965 when Britain created the British Indian Ocean Territory, excluding Mauritius’ claims and forcibly removing the Chagossians, the island’s indigenous people.

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Russian forces attacked port infrastructure in Odessa, injuring two people, including a port employee and a grain carrier driver. The attack involved a ballistic missile. Ukraine’s port infrastructure has faced frequent Russian attacks since Russia withdrew from a U.N.-brokered grain shipment deal. Kyiv has since created its own maritime corridor for shipments.

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A British man set a new Guinness World Record for the highest altitude ski BASE jump, leaping from 18,753 feet on Mera Peak in Nepal. Mera Peak is located in the Khumbu region of Nepal, standing at 6,476m above sea level, making it the highest trekking peak in the country. The peak dominates the area between the Hinku and Hongu Drangkas valleys and is considered the gateway to Everest. Trekkers usually climb Mera Central, although Mera North Peak is the highest. Mera Peak was first climbed in 1953 by Col. Jimmy Roberts and Sen Tenzing.

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Recent tensions between Japan and China have increased due to a Chinese military aircraft violating Japanese airspace. A Chinese Y-9 surveillance plane breached Japanese airspace near the Danjo Islands for about two minutes. This is the first confirmed airspace incursion by a Chinese military aircraft into Japanese airspace. The Danjo Islands, situated in the East China Sea off Japan’s southern Nagasaki prefecture, are strategically important with potential resources. The incident adds to ongoing maritime provocations by Chinese vessels near these disputed islands.

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Five-year-old Teghbir Singh from Ropar, Punjab, climbed Mount Kilimanjaro, the highest peak in Africa. He started the trek on August 18 and reached the Uhuru peak on August 23. Mount Kilimanjaro stands at over 19,340 feet (5895 meters) in Tanzania. The trek posed challenges like low oxygen and altitude sickness, with temperatures dropping to -10°C. Teghbir received a Mountain Climbing Certificate from Tanzania National Parks. He matched the world record set by a Serbian boy for summiting Kilimanjaro at age five. Teghbir is now the youngest Asian and Indian to achieve this feat.

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The Arbaat Dam in eastern Sudan collapsed after heavy rainfall, leading to severe flooding. Sudan, located in northeastern Africa, was Africa’s largest country before South Sudan’s secession in 2011. It is now the third largest. The country is bordered by Central African Republic, Chad, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Libya, South Sudan, and the Red Sea.
Sudan is home to the River Nile, the longest river in the world, with the White and Blue Niles meeting in Khartoum, the capital, and flowing to the Mediterranean Sea via Egypt.